I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this...

Unfortunately I didn't click with Eging's writing style: something about the tone felt... slightly off? Sort of informal in a way that didn't feel like it was a deliberate choice. (Plus it could have done with one or two more round of editing.)

I liked all the illustrations, but none of the poems did anything for me, and I didn't particularly care about any of the characters in any of the short stories. I'm also personally not a fan of bleak/unhappy endings, which most of the stories had - it's also mentioned in the Author's Note that these are bedtime stories he used to tell his children, which worries me slightly given how dark they all are...

This is a collection of poetry, short stories and artwork which was so well done. Seriously, the illustrations are fantastic. Definitely worth checking out for those who like fantasy collections and mixed poetry/prose/art.

I'm having a hard time rating this. I gave it two stars in the end, but that doesn't seem entirely fair to me. I think I might have had the wrong expectations going into this book. Many of the stories didn't really stand out to me and some I just didn't like. I really wish I could have enjoyed it more. I did quite like the poem TOUCH OF THE POET’S PEN though and the fact that the book also had illustrations.
Other people might be able to enjoy it more than I did.

This was an adventure! I was swept up in the story and left speechless as I read through this tale. This is sure to be a classic! I think fantasy lovers will die hard love this story and will not be able to put it down.

Interesting collection of short fantasy stories. This kind of book is not really my thing but the stories were all nicely written.

I saw that I can get an ARC of this book from NetGalley despite the release date having come and gone, and with a cover like that it was a bit hard for me to scroll away.

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Overall, I think that Michael Eging has a very ambitious and creative mind because of the amount of different story-lines and themes he discusses in this collection. That being said, not every story in it was actually entertaining to read and I blame that mainly on the length.

The majority of the collection were poetry pieces, where all except one, "The Cry of the Hunt", weren't amongst the type I enjoy reading about. The fault might also be on me, because I don't really enjoy poetry all that much to begin with, but I will hand it to him for that particular story because it was very interesting.

As I continued reading, "The Lost Spell" and "What's in a name?" were probably the two I enjoyed the most and it's most likely because of the inspiration he got when writing them, namely Arthurian Legends and the Hobbit respectively. I'll say that the Lost Spell was the one I believe was the better constructed one of the two, as Name had confusing shifts in POV at times, though enjoyment wise? "What's in a name?" would be the one I liked better.

I did also notice somewhat of a Not-A-Fan-Of-Happy-Endings sort of vibe from his writing, as several stories like "From Beyond the Grave" and "Stardusted" ended on a note I didn't expect at all. From Beyond the Grave especially, I didn't see that coming at all and more accurately, it never crossed my mind that he would actually go in that direction. Yet, I find myself really liking the more ominous tones.

One more thing I appreciated here were the illustrations, they, like the stories, ranged in enjoyment and quality, but overall I liked having them. I have a form of aphantasia, not officially diagnosed although any test I tried yielded the same result, and having the images provided was actually pretty interesting.

It's short collection, it only gives a snippet of what he's capable of, but it makes it easier for me to approach his future stories based on what I read.

Final rating: 2.5/5

I read about 20% of the book (3 poems and 2 stories) and can't, for the love of me, remember what they were all about. The writing style didn't fit me at all.

So instead of finishing and torturing myself and leaving a horrible feedback, I'm deciding to leave it at that - the writing style was not my cup of tea.

I loved the concept, tho!
I like me a good mixture of short stories (poetry not that much). And I LOVE that rising artists were invited and involved in the book as well - everyone with their own representation of the poem/story in question.

I enjoyed reading the book even though I don't typically read within the genre. I was drawn to it because it included poetry and short stories, both of which I do read. What I enjoyed the most was the variety. Each poem and story was so different that it almost seemed as if they were written by different authors. The illustrations were also nice. The only reason I didn't give it five stars is that I wish there was something deeper that connected the stories, or that the author explained why he chose this particular collection to put together. Also, all stories weren't equally good.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own

This is a fantastic book for class, for hlmework assignmet or just for home (own children, nephews and nieces ... small neighbours... you name it). I really enjoyed it and I believe I'll be using it soon in class

A brilliant collection of Fantasy/Sci-Fi stories, poems and art.

This book contains a vast collection of different short stories and poems. It starts out with high fantasy/mythology and ends with Sci-Fi/apocalyptic short stories. The theme of each story is different, some have good endings and some don't. Yet they all somehow fit toghether. Just when I thought "Hm, all these different high fantasy settings are staring to repeat themselves a little", the next stories took place in the present or future.
Each story was unique in writing style and theme but enyojed every single one.

However there was one small issue. I read this book on my Phone in the kindle app and the artwork was not displayed properly. The pictures were either warped or could not be displayed at all. (If this issue is resolved I will give this book 5 stars).

I am a huge fan of short stories. Plus Fantasy and Sci-Fi are some of my favourite book categories.
If you these points also apply to you, you should read this book.

4.5/5

Tales of the Lost Horizon contains a variety of stories for readers who enjoy fantasy. Glad to read this work from an author who is new to me.

⭐️ 2.75 / 5 ⭐️

An interesting collection of Sci-Fi/Fantasy poetry & short stories.

I didn’t enjoy this as much as I was expecting. The only short story I liked was the one based on Arthurian legend. A bit of a letdown but oh 🐳

Big thank you to BooksGoSocial for sending me an ARC of this book!

This is the first time that I have come across Michael Eging, author of 'Annwyn's Blood', and the idea of reading a selection of short stories and poetry by a fantasy writer appealed, even though it is a genre I do not usually read.
As with any collection of short stories, you will always find some that you prefer more than others and this was the case for me. Looking firstly at the poetry, the highlights for me were 'Antony, he goes not alone - ' a poem that takes the death of Mark Antony as its starting point and 'Splendor'. This poem might be one of the shorter ones but was beautifully vivid. For me, these two stood out amongst the poetry.
The book is also illustrated and sadly, I always find that images never translate well on a Kindle - not on mine anyway, which is one of the older models. I would love to see them in a hard copy so that I can appreciate the finer details.
Moving on to the short stories - what a variety. We are taken from god and serpents, to a new version of the Arthurian legend in 'The Lost Spell', to a mini epic fantasy in 'What's In A Name?'. This story has touches of 'The Hobbit' and 'Lord of the Rings' in it - a band of elves in a quest for a jewel that is in the hands, or claws, of a dragon. Super imagery and humour. A really enjoyable read. Then we move almost to the modern day in 'From Beyond the Grave' with its unexpected ending. But the author has not finished with us yet. We next move into space with 'Stardusted' and onto the story that I think was the most moving and heart-breaking - 'The Cyborg Heartache'. The final story has its starting point in life as we are experiencing it now - a pandemic. Hopefully, the outcome for us will not be as the author portrays it here.
So very different stories but for me 'The Cyborg Heartache' and 'What's In A Name?' were the two stories that were the highlights and even if you have never picked up Michael Eging before, I would recommend that you choose this for these two stories alone.

I have mixed feelings about this book; mostly because even though I'm not a huge fan of the genre I really did like the short stories. Procession of the Ants, The Lost Spell, What's in a name (spoiler alert; the dragon is my favorite in that story), Dancing with Demons are all fantastic stories. I was about to list my favorite ones but then I realized I actually liked all of them. I loved the art and I loved that he created a book that mixed poetry and with stories and art!
Eging can write well, but I'm taking off 2 stars for two reasons (which I feel like may actually be the same reason).
1) The poetry is not to my taste. As I said, this isn't my favorite area so I may be very biased and you can very well disagree with me.
2) The stories got a bit much for me. What's in a name is something I would have recommended to everyone had it not continued after the dragon tore that guy apart. Gi sights is really really not something I like and way too American and zombie movie-ish to be my thing.
Overall, I definitely think he's a good writer and if you like sci-fi and fantasy you'll love his stories.ac

Tales of the Lost Horizon is a great collection of poetry and short stories for people who LOVE SFF. For me, someone who is still working their way into the genre, it was still pretty good. I also enjoyed the artwork interspersed throughout each chapter.

4/5 Stars

Thank you to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.